Steve Jackson Games - Site Navigation
Home General Info Follow Us Search Illuminator Store Forums What's New Other Games Ogre GURPS Munchkin Our Games: Home

Go Back   Steve Jackson Games Forums > Roleplaying > GURPS

Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 10-06-2017, 04:45 PM   #551
tshiggins
 
tshiggins's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Denver, Colorado
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

Quote:
Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
A Work in Progress that I'm taking suggestions on, if anyone wishes (e.g. he doesn't have enough quirks, and I'm thinking on whether I should look for a template to flesh out his skills):

Dr. Edgar Cizko, MD (Dr. Psycho)

(SNIP)

Thoughts?
What are you thinking for his motivations? Is he just a black sheep who despises his family, or does he actually have goals or an ideology?

Also, you mentioned sleep deprivation. Did you come through the hurricane, okay?
__________________
--
MXLP:9 [JD=1, DK=1, DM-M=1, M(FAW)=1, SS=2, Nym=1 (nose coffee), sj=1 (nose cocoa), Maz=1]
"Some days, I just don't know what to think." -Daryl Dixon.

Last edited by tshiggins; 10-06-2017 at 04:52 PM.
tshiggins is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-07-2017, 04:55 PM   #552
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

Quote:
Originally Posted by tshiggins View Post
What are you thinking for his motivations? Is he just a black sheep who despises his family, or does he actually have goals or an ideology?
He's a misogynist with a serious madonna-whore complex (his dead mother, he views as perfect, all other women, he sees as whores, and especially despises those who do not 'know their place,' and seeks to push them into said place; Wonder Woman really pisses him off). He was a bit of a jackass growing up, though on the other hand, he was a jackass partly because his family mostly didn't like having an ugly dwarf bearing their name. Only his mother, while she was alive, treated him the way he thinks he should have been treated, though few of the adults or older children were directly cruel to him.

The worst he suffered physically was from his cousin William (later Congressman William Cizko), who threw him out of a second-story window into a rose bush, after Edgar tried to telepathically force William to hurt William's younger sister, after said sister insulted Edgar (William had been on Edgar's side up until then, but trying to mind control him, and doing that to force him to strike a girl, especially his sister, was unforgivable). Mostly, the abuse was emotional, and more often took the form of emotional neglect and avoidance, which got worse as Edgar got more disagreeable. Puberty was not kind to him, especially arriving not so long after his mother's death. The fact that his family kept a third eye out to make sure he wasn't mind-controlling people into sex did not make him more fond of them.

If I write up Charles or William, I'll also need to write up the family's Code of Honor (that Edgar violates enthusiastically), but you can generally think of them as 'mostly good (or at least, non-evil) telepaths, though not necessarily adventurous ones.' It's just unfortunate that they also happen to be mostly snooty rich people who care more than they need to about how the family looks to Society.

Quote:
Originally Posted by tshiggins View Post
Also, you mentioned sleep deprivation. Did you come through the hurricane, okay?
Yes, I did. Better than expected, certainly, and better than a lot of others, but I'm glad we were overprepared, rather than underprepared.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.

Last edited by Prince Charon; 10-08-2017 at 03:30 PM.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2017, 01:47 PM   #553
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

Another article, which I hope will be of interest:

On the 'Lantern Corps' NGOs

Depending on how you look at it, there are either several connected Lantern-based Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), or one large NGO with overlapping subdivisions, seven of which are divided by ring-colour. Not all who have and use a power ring are members of these NGOs (indeed, the majority aren't), and fairly few who do join, are full-time employees: Many are police officers, paramedics, firefighters, search-and-rescue workers, soldiers, and so forth, and many more have far less daring jobs, like accountants, programmers, janitors, plumbers, or enchanters. Some are also members of a local chapter of the Justice League, as the two groups overlap significantly, and redundant training can be skipped, as grades are shared. Many are even liaisons with local branches of the Avengers, X-Men, Jedi, Star Fleet Security, or other such groups.

The Lantern Corps are organized into local Sectors, which may have anywhere from a single member (usually a Green), to more than 30 (e.g. Sector 2814 contains New York City, and has 32 active Lanterns of various colours, 17 of them Green - unfortunately, NYC also has a disturbing number of criminals and supervillains, though at least they can't cause nearly the death-toll or property damage the ones in the comics do... of course, most of those Lanterns are about as dangerous as a SWAT-armoured flying person with a taser/multitool), depending on population density, number of Lanterns already living there (or willing to move there), number of other superheroes in the area, and how friendly or unfriendly the local government is to Lanterns, and powered people in general - they are trained to work with the police, and thus are not assigned where they're not wanted, unless the State or Federal government (or equivalent outside the USA) tells the local police to accept them - it is a great understatement that the latter causes much resentment, on the rare occasions that it happens.

The various Corps have many non-Lantern administrators, clerical workers, and what might best be called 'handlers', even if more innocuous terms are preferred - in some cases, the handlers are Lanterns, themselves, usually Green, Blue, or sometimes Indigo.

* Red Lantern Corps (aka Red Lanterns, Rage Lanterns, Psycho Lanterns): Those in the thrall of the Red Light of Rage range from feral, near-mindless brutes vomiting forth blood-like ectoplasm, to very angry but otherwise sane folks, to eerily serene individuals that you wouldn't know are angry at all, if you didn't see them using a power that depends on it. Unfortunately, the press tends to report the ferals far more often than any other type, despite the middle group being the most common.

Feral Reds tend to be short-lived unless mind controlled, both because they have no concept of stealth, long-term strategy, or even tactics (indeed, few can even make constructs, instead using the ring to increase their strength and durability, and either fighting hand-to-hand, or burning targets with their ectoplasm), and because they are dependent on their rings to survive at all, as the ring destroys the wearer's heart, replacing it with an automatic construct. Most methods of neutralizing the Red ring have a high probability to near-complete certainty of shutting down that construct, requiring a replacement heart immediately.

One rare variant of feral Red Lantern that is growing more common, is the cyclical feral, or 'were-feral'. These Reds appear normal (if irritable) most of the time, showing no signs of being Red Lanterns, as the ring makes itself undetectable, sometimes hiding within the heart-construct, or abandoning its original fetish entirely, to embed itself in a tattoo, scar, or other mark on or in the host. They transform into Red Lanterns (often with a change in appearance) at some trigger, such as the full moon, night fall, midnight, or after the host gets angry enough, and then hide and revert to normal once the stimulus, or sufficient time, has passed. Such hosts often have no idea that they are now a Red Lantern, until they transform, and sometimes not even then, as many do not remember anything that occurred in that state.

The non-feral Reds are quite different, in that they rarely have the heart replaced, are able to create constructs, and mostly qualify as sapient and legally sane. Many join the Corps for the anger-management therapy, and for the healthy outlet of the rage they carry within them. They often find the use of the ring cathartic.

Despite the jokes, the Red Lantern Corps does not use any form of old Soviet ranking system, though some of the snarkier ones do call their non-Red (and sometimes non-Lantern) handlers 'commissars', with varying degrees of respect.

Most Red rings are capable of detecting and encouraging rage in the hearts of others, and even lending some power to those on the grip of great anger and hatred.

Red rings can be disrupted by the Blue Light of Hope, which can relatively easily destroy their constructs and other effects, or even shut the ring down, completely (this weakness varies from ring to ring, or sometimes from wielder to wielder, and is sometimes an advantage for specific Blue rings, as well). The latter is lethal for ferals, of course. Many feral Reds, and some non-ferals, are unable to use their rings while feeling Love, and may even be completely rejected by them, if the Love is strong enough, or a Star Sapphire is working to empower that feeling.

Some Red rings cannot affect anything coloured Blue, or have difficulty doing so without the wielder performing some variety of mental gymnastics (which is especially difficult when enraged). Others, especially those worn by the 'were-ferals', have a similar difficulty with anything made of silver (including alloys of more than 50% silver). None have more than one colour/material of weakness, if they have any at all.


* Orange Lantern Corps (aka Greedy Bastard Corps, Agents Orange, Orange Lanterns): Least organized of the Lantern NGOs, and also, Corps with the lowest ratio of members to Ringwielders of that colour. Those chosen by the Orange Light of Avarice are of a selfish nature, and often feel they can make more money as thieves or mercenaries, or other such careers, than as part of a group (that they aren't in charge of). Also, Orange Ring-spirits are themselves selfish, and urge their wielders to take the rings of other Orange Lanterns (or other Lanterns in general, even if they can't use them) for themselves, or drain energy from them. This is much more difficult with the Rings of other colours than with Orange rings - an Orange ring simply goes to the one who wants it the most, whereas the other rings require twice as much Greed as the opposing user has Will, Rage, et cetra. Blue rings and Star Sapphire rings can neither be drained nor stolen, in this manner.

Saner, or more personable, Orange Lanterns are able to accept the needs of others as part of their own, because these people are their family, their friends, and/or their teammates, or even their nation. Even they can be more than a little 'off', though.

With the application of sufficient Avarice, an Orange Lantern Ring can bind a spirit to the user's (or the ring-spirit's) service, effectively turning the spirit into a sentient (and possibly somewhat sapient) construct. In theory, an Orange ring can also enslave a living being in this manner, though no Orange Lantern has demonstrated the ability to accomplish this.

Some Orange rings cannot effect anything coloured Blue, or have difficulty doing so without the wielder performing some variety of mental gymnastics. Like Red rings, most Orange rings are vulnerable to the Blue Light of Hope, which can disrupt their constructs - and the Orange rings and ring-spirits, themselves - more easily than other Lights, especially when combined with Green or Violet. This can even set free beings who have been Assimilated.


Still hating the character limit.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2017, 01:48 PM   #554
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

* Yellow Lantern Corps (aka Yellow Lanterns, Gold Lanterns, Sinestro Corps, F.E.A.R. Corps): Like the others on their side of the spectrum, those who bear the Yellow Light of Fear tend to have a bad reputation. Some of them deserve it, but those who join the Corps are expected to be, or become, better than that.

There was some debate over naming this Corps the 'Sinestro Corps' officially, as exceptions were made for the Star Sapphire Corps and the Indigo Tribe, but it was felt that this would be tempting fate too much. It didn't stop many comics fans, and some members, from nicknaming it the Sinestro Corps, though.

The Yellow Lantern Corps are one of only two Corps who have a complex hierarchy of ranks (that they actually pay attention to), in their case in the style of a military force (ironic, given that far more of them are cops, than are military). Rank insignia are displayed within the Lantern sigil, though depending on the individual 'uniform' style, they may be shown elsewhere, as well. Normally, this in on the upper sleeve for Enlisted and NCOs, and the collar for officers:

Rank 5:
OF-5 (Senior Commander) [eagle with Yellow Lantern sigil on its chest, wreathed]
OF-5 Commander [eagle with Yellow Lantern sigil on its chest]

Rank 4:
OF-3 (Vice Commander) [oak leaf, wreathed]
OF-3 Major [oak leaf]

Rank 3:
OF-2 Captain [two bars]
OF-1 Lieutenant [one bar]

Rank 2:
OR-5 (Sergeant Major) [three point-up chevrons over one rocker, with DC logo inside]
OR-5 (Staff Sergeant) [three point-up chevrons over one rocker]
OR-5 Sergeant [three point-up chevrons]

Rank 1:
OR-4 Corporal [two point-up chevrons]

Rank 0:
OR-2 Lantern [one point-up chevron]
OR-1 Recruit [no insignia]

Ranks in parentheses are positions, rather than official ranks, as the Yellow Lantern Corps is not large enough to really need so many ranks in general, but some regions have more Yellow Lanterns than others, and some Yellow Lanterns are more respected than others.

Lanterns who are also active, reserve, or retired members of military or police forces, or other uniformed government services, often have the same rank, or a bit higher, in the Corps. Those who are not part of such a service have ranks based on training, tests, experience, and the needs of the Corps - the latter can lead to some quite unexpected promotions, especially early on. It is somewhat more common though, for behavioral and trust issues to result in a Yellow Lantern having a lower rank than his or her prior service would indicate, as the Yellow Lantern Corps has, by necessity, rather more strict psychological standards than most police forces, and most other Lantern Corps.

Most Yellow rings can detect, encourage, and manipulate the fears in the minds of nearby individuals, or with great difficulty, even create them where none exist (causing an armed robber to briefly become afraid of his own gun, for example), though an effort of Will can block or end such effects.

Some Yellow rings cannot affect anything coloured Blue (or in a few cases, Green), or have difficulty doing so without the wielder performing some variety of mental gymnastics. Even those that are capable of affecting blue things, however, will have their constructs and other effects eroded by a sufficiently strong application of the Blue Light of Hope.

Since August 14, 2013, there have been, in effect, two Corps wielding the Yellow Light of Fear: the official Non-Government Organization chartered by Time-Warner/DC (the Yellow Lantern Corps), and a secret organization being gradually formed by subverting members of the NGO, and unaffiliated Yellow Lanterns (the Sinestro Corps). The latter force began due to an arrogant fool possessing both a Yellow power ring, and a knowledge of spirit-summoning, who summoned the thoughtform of Thaal Sinestro (comics version) to learn from him, and instead got himself possessed. The two Corps use the same rank scheme, for ease of infiltration, save that 'Sinestro' holds the rank of 'Supreme Commander' (OF-7, GURPS Rank 6) in his Corps.


* Green Lantern Corps (aka Green Lanterns, F-Sharp Bells, Willslingers): The most common variety of Lantern by far, and the colour with the largest ratio of members to Ringwielders of that colour.

The Green Lantern Corps are one of only two Corps who have a complex hierarchy of ranks (that they actually pay attention to), in their case based on a mix of modern police ranks, and Latin titles & ranks - the latter due to the use of 'Clarissi' and 'Illustres' (singular 'Illustris') in Blackest Night. Rank insignia are displayed within the Lantern sigil, though depending on the individual 'uniform' style, they may be shown elsewhere, as well or instead. Normally, this in on the upper sleeve for Decurions and below, and the collar for officers:

Rank 7:
OF-7 Clarissi [three stars]

Rank 6:
OF-6 Illustris [two stars]
OF-5 Chief Inspector [one star]

Rank 5:
OF-4 Inspector [eagle with Green Lantern sigil on its chest]

Rank 4:
OF-3 Deputy Inspector [oak leaf]

Rank 3:
OF-2 Centurion [two bars]
OF-1 Lieutenant [one bar]

Rank 2:
OR-6 Decurion [three point-down chevrons]

Rank 1:
OR-4 Senior Lantern [two point-down chevrons]

Rank 0:
OR-2 Lantern [no insignia]
OR-1 Cadet [no insignia, no Lantern badge]

Ranks are determined in much the same way as with Yellow Lanterns, though in many Sectors 'needs of the Corps' includes 'needing the highest-ranked Green Lantern to outrank the highest Yellow Lantern', or 'needing the handler of a Yellow Lantern to outrank that specific Yellow Lantern'. Where practical, the Sector may have all Green Lanterns outrank all Yellow Lanterns, though this is often cause for resentment among the F.E.A.R. Corps.

Lt. Col. Jordan Halley, USAF, ret. (a former officer of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, who has never been a test pilot or fighter pilot), is the current Clarissi of the Green Lantern Corps. She got the job due to being both an excellent administrator, and a highly competent law-enforcement officer, not by being a particularly strong ring-wielder - powerwise, she's not much above average for a Green, and most likely got the ring due to her name. Notably, she is a highly skilled, precise, and imaginative ring-wielder, and her ring is not one with any of the weaknesses noted below.

Oddly, Green rings are able to absorb energy from Indigo rings, even if the Indigo wielder does not wish this.

Some Green rings cannot effect anything coloured Yellow, or have difficulty doing so without the wielder performing some variety of mental gymnastics. Others have a similar difficulty with things made of Wood, Gold, or Aluminium. None have more than one colour/material of weakness. Both Yellow and Red power rings are able to erode Green constructs and effects more easily than other Lights, though Green Lanterns who have mastered there own fear and/or rage are generally immune to this. A number of Green rings are vulnerable to sound waves in various ways, such as making constructs significantly smaller than intended.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-17-2017, 01:49 PM   #555
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

* Blue Lantern Corps (aka Blue Lanterns, Bringers of Hope): Those who bear the Blue Light of Hope have no formal hierarchy, and many call each other 'Brother' or 'Sister', not always jokingly.

One unusual ability of the Blue Lanterns is their ability to add their own Hope to a Green Lantern's Will. This effect takes a number of forms, but most often means that the Green Lantern is simply more powerful, creating stronger constructs and shields, flying faster, running out of power later, and so forth.

In the absence of a Green ring (or reasonably similar source), blue rings often have more limited abilities, though how limited varies somewhat from ring to ring. In general, flight, life-support (if the ring provides any), & basic defences always work, and healing of self or others usually does - indeed, Blue rings are on average the best for healing others. Constructs and offensive effects generally do not, or are limited to illusions. One important exception to this is when the ring-wielder is in the presence of large numbers of people all Hoping for the same thing, allowing the user or users to perform far greater effects than would otherwise be possible.

Most Blue rings are able to sense the hopes of others, and to encourage them. This is often used in conjunction with healing.

A number of Blue Lanterns are therapy animals. The ring-spirit supplements the animal's own intelligence, as well as serving as a translator for those who cannot talk.


* Indigo Tribe (aka Indigo Lantern Corps, Indigo Lanterns, Blueish-Purple Lanterns, 'Who?' et cetra): Nok.

The followers of the Indigo Light of Compassion are one of the less common Corps, and likewise are more obscure, not least because the colour of the Light they wield is often ignored in discussions of colours. They are also the Corps with the highest percentage of non-sapient members, particularly dogs.

Most Indigo rings are quite good at healing, second only to Blue. All Indigo rings can, with some effort, emulate the Lights of other ring-colours, so long as the wielder has the right emotion in great enough measure. Also, the rings grant a language to the Indigo Tribe that cannot be translated by any other ring-colour, or by magic, as well as making them supremely difficult to trace or track if they do not want to be.

Indigo Tribesfolk are often too Compassionate, and likewise may be vulnerable to the Wills of others. Abuse of this weakness by Green Lanterns (and others) is rare, and strongly discouraged, but does sometimes occur.

The default 'uniform' of the Indigo tribe is not particularly uniformal, being ragged, durable, vaguely tribal clothes (those who wear clothes at all), with tattoos and/or patterned hair (or fur) dye.


* Star Sapphire Corps (aka Violet Lanterns, Pink Lanterns, Purple Lanterns, Stalker Corps, Yandere Corps, et cetra): The ones who serve the Violet Light of Love seem to have little in the way of formal hierarchy, beyond Rookie, Star Sapphire, and Queen, the latter being held by the thoughtform Aga'po, who is an advisor, rather than a leader.

The Violet Light of Love is good for healing, often roughly equal with the Indigo Light of Compassion. A few Star Sapphires have demonstrated the ability to place a target in suspended animation within an ectoplasmic 'love crystal' (after which the victim will grow more strongly in touch with the emotion of Love- the more time in the crystal, the more in touch with Love they become, at the cost of other emotions). It is uncertain whether this is an ability that only a few rings have, or a matter of few Star Sapphires being able to muster sufficient Love to create this effect.

The default uniform is most often some form or swimsuit with boots and gloves, often very sexy, yet very tacky (these rings also tend to be better at permanently enhancing the wearers appearance and physical fitness, faster than the user could do it without magic, but still over a period of weeks or months for most people). Star Sapphires rarely recognize that there is anything wrong with the uniform while the ring is active. If they're lucky, this will be the only mental interference the ring produces. If they're unlucky, they can become dangerously obsessed with the object of their affections, with love in general, or both (hence 'Stalker Corps' and 'Yandere Corps'). The psychotherapy budget for this Corps is higher than any other, save for the Red Lanterns.

Male members are often mistaken for homosexual, regardless of actual orientation.


* Others
A few rings correspond to emotions not used in the comics, like Happiness, Sadness, Pride, Despair, and so forth. These lanterns generally do not have Corps of their own, but may find employment (and therapy, if needed) with any other Corps that's considered 'close enough.' If enough wielders of any one of these Lights join, another Corps might be spun off for them.

Rumours that the NGOs as a group, or some specific Corps (usually Green or Yellow) have a black ops division called 'The Corpse' are categorically denied, by said NGOs, by Time-Warner, and by the Inp-US, Canadian, Mexican, and other governments. They may even be telling the truth. There's no evidence, anyway.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-18-2017, 09:27 PM   #556
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

Two updates in rapid succession like this may never happen again (unless a much faster writer than me gets inspired), but this is when these two posts were ready:

May, 2014 (1942 on Earth-2, 1880 on Earth-3, 1557 on Earth-4, and 516 CE/1269 AUC on Earth-5)

May 2: A Japanese Gundam team is to be deployed to the Hoth Front when transportation becomes available (this use of ridiculously impractical vehicles is intended to encourage the Axis powers to waste money on more ridiculously impractical Wunderwaffen, rather than more useful tanks and ships; it also gets the otaku who built them to shut up about deploying their silly toys). Some in the militaries of other countries on Earth-1 are surprised that they found enough actual soldiers willing to pilot the silly things, though to be fair, only six are marked for deployment. In Dsp-London, MI6 receives a report that a wormhole may exist connecting an unknown military base in Nazi Germany with a military base on Venus(2).

May 4: In Dsp-Ruritania, Hans Ruddendorf, leader of the Nationalsozialistische Arbeiterpartei Ruritanischen (National Socialist Ruritanian Workers Party) is assassinated by a sniper. The party blames the Marxistische Partei der Arbeiter und Bauern Ruritanischen (Marxist Party of Ruritanian Workers and Peasants), and initiates a purge. In Dsp-Germany, the 'Übermensch, Typ Eins' cloned soldiers see combat in North Africa. Though they are large, strong, and intimidating, their poor health, low intelligence, lack of creativity, and numerous mental problems do not serve them well on twentieth century battlefields.

May 5: The X-58, designated White Mobile Space Force Base (MSFB), is completed over Luna-1 (see March 4, 2014). The deceptively delicate-looking vessel serves as both a bomber tender and a mobile base (the word 'carrier' is specifically absent from documentation) for short-range fighters and other small-craft. She is defended by interceptor and area-defense missiles, repellor screens, laser screens, multiple force shield layers of various types, a plasma field close to the hull, and structural integrity fields.

May 7: In Dsp-UK, the Blackhawk Squadron takes delivery of twelve P-87 Blackhawks, some of which will be used as reserve planes. In Inp-New Jersey, the Atlantic City Joker escapes from the asylum where he has been confined since Feb. 26, 2014. Later that night, this Joker is killed by Kevin Walters (see Sept. 23, 2013). The second Battle of Midway(2) occurs - the US Navy retakes the atoll, assisted by Royal Navy and Commonwealth forces. IJN forces were not involved, due to concerns over bad luck.

May 9: 'Occlumency: Defending the Mind' (see June 7, 2013) published. Other topics include meditation and autohypnosis, sensing mental intrusions, building up one's mental strength, and developing a true mind shield, as well as methods for enchanting an item (usually headgear made of or with metal) for that purpose. One important recommendation the book offers is to find a friendly telepath to help develop these skills. Apart from the main authors, JK Rowling and Michael Gambon, contributing writers include Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart, Ian McKellen, and Patricia Tallman, among others.

May 10: The telepathic people of Titan(2) hold a general election, leading to the more isolationist party losing power, to be replaced by a party that is less isolationist. In Dsp-London, Parliament passes a resolution guaranteeing the independence of the Princely States in the 'unlikely' event that India ceases to be part of the Empire. In the Dsp-North Pacific, the Battle of the Severgin Strait takes place: an IJN fleet attacks Axis forces retreating from the Battle of Midway. The battle is a decisive Japanese victory. In Inp-New Zealand, UNIT-NZ and the RNZAF acquire several PEW-PEW guns (see March 3, 2014) for testing purposes. The Allied Constellation (see April 24, 2014) breaches the Earth-1 universe. Kenji and Sadako encounter a Teke Teke, but are able to resolve the situation without too much loss of life. The Moai 1 probe is launched from Cape Canaveral(1) on a course for Makemake(1).

May 12: Forster Reforms of the Stp-British Army begin, inspired by the ideas of Secretary of State for War William Edward Forster's adopted son's counterparts on the Future Earths. The British Army is to be split between a long-service Imperial Army (mostly serving overseas), a short-service Territorial Army (mostly staying in the UK), and the Volunteer Reserves (also in the UK, unless called up). Both Imperial and Territorial personnel are expected to spend time in the Reserves after leaving active service. The reforms also begin phasing out the sale of officers' commissions.

May 14: The Allied Constellation begins landings on Earth-1, having been slowed down by the Kessler shell. At a diplomatic dinner in Aluros, Dsp-Luna, the Selenean representatives are surprised to learn that the Ssoranthhu have never heard of the Mysterons, and believe that there are only three sophont races on Mars (though the Seleneans only knew about Mysterons from the records they extracted from the ancient listening post). The Ssoranthhu cultural attaché notes that descriptions of the Mysterons resemble tales of the ancient Martian creator-gods, common to Ssoranthhuul, Changing Martian, and Sarmak mythology.

Again, I complain about the character limit...
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-18-2017, 09:28 PM   #557
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

May 17: In Dsp-England, Lord James Montgomery Falsworth, 1st Earl Falsworth (the WWI hero known as Union Jack, back when his father was 3rd Baron Falsworth; his identity was secret during that war, but not for very long after) and his children are attacked by his vampiric brother, Baron Blood (these things happen, you know, even in the best of families). His son Brian becomes Union Jack II, and his daughter Jackie (after receiving a blood transfusion from Captain Kerosene) becomes the heroine Spitfire.

May 19: On Earth-2, the Dsp-British Army begins experimenting with an Armoured Personnel Carrier (designated an 'infantry section tank,' for the number of men it can carry) based on technology from the T-54/55, and other Earth-1 sources. Several variants are planned, much like Inp-UK's Warrior TAV family or Inp-USA's Stryker IAV family. In Dsp-New York Harbor, SS Normandie (see Feb. 6, 2014) is refloated, and brought to dry-dock.

May 20: The Dsp-US government agrees to recognize the Free French as the legitimate successor state to the French Third Republic (cutting out Vichy France), on the condition that Charles De Gaulle is neither Head of State nor Head of Government, though his position as professional head of the Free French Forces is not in dispute, nor is his resignation from that position requested (they don't want to deal with him, and want someone above him who can give him orders). Unofficially, the French National Committee are informed that the USA(2) recognizing a government lead by De Gaulle when they have any other vaguely plausible option is not in the cards (several Dsp-French royals and politicians living in the Dsp-USA are suggested, though they are not the only options outside of Dsp-Metropolitan France).

May 23: In Dsp-Washington, D.C., aviatrix Connie Kurridge joins the Uniformed Division of the USDEO (see March 29, 2014). On Earth-1, AvLeak's website announces an article in the next issue on the under-construction Planetary Siege Fortresses, currently designated Deep Space 1 and Deep Space 2. An excerpt from the article includes a common nickname for the two asteroids-cum-vehicles, among the project personnel: 'Death Stars.'
http://www.hishgraphics.com/blog/ima...th-station.jpg
PSF 'Deep Space 1' under construction (artist's conception).

May 25: In Dsp-Japan, Nishizumi Kaho is given command of the all-female 23rd (Experimental) Armoured Regiment, a unit which makes use of modified German tank designs, manufactured from plans obtained when Japan was still with the Axis. Over Luna(1), construction is completed on the X-59, designated Chaffe Mobile Space Force Base. This MSFB is designed to carry landing shuttles (aka dropships), as well as provide for large numbers of troops and amounts of equipment on a long journey (functionally a space assault carrier, though the documentation does not describe it that way). Defensive systems are comparable to those of the X-58 design.

May 27: Mongo receives radio transmissions from the arrival of the other Earths, in December of 1940/2012 (525 light days between Earth-2's position at the time of transmission, and Mongo's position at time of reception). The Emperor orders the Wormhole Machine repaired. Dsp-British spies tracking economic reports discover that German chocolate is 'disappearing,' in that significant quantities of it are being produced in German territory, or purchased from neutral or other Axis countries, and are apparently being sold on to recently-created holding companies with no known assets, and just sitting there. Rumours indicate that the chocolate is being sent to Venus, in exchange for technology and technical assistance.

May 29: Dsp-USN aircraft carrier USS Essex, lead ship of the Essex-class, commissioned. Dsp-US Army officially adopts the IMI UZI submachine gun in .45 ACP, licensed to local manufacturers (as well as two Dsp-US factories leased to IMI). In Inp-Camden, NJ, a new Joker appears, wearing the costume and apparently the personality of the DCAU Joker (his voice resembles a fourtyish Mark Hamill, though his face does not).

With thanks to Saphroneth on SB.com for pointing me to H.O. Arnold-Forster.


Thoughts?

Also, if it matters to anyone reading this, I will be going to NecronomiCon this weekend.
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-02-2017, 12:19 PM   #558
Prince Charon
 
Prince Charon's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

I normally don't do this here, but does anyone have suggestions for additions to this bit?:

June 13: Full Moon on Friday the 13th, on Earth-1. A group of Dresden Files necromancers perform the first of a sequence of rituals intended to eventually manifest the spirit of Heinrich Kemmler in the body of their leader. This goes unnoticed due to other incidents on this date, including 342 reported attacks by various types of werecreature, 47 by people or spirits dressed as Jason Vorhees, and PLACEHOLDER (suggestions?).
__________________
Warning, I have the Distractible and Imaginative quirks in real life.

"The more corrupt a government, the more it legislates."
-- Tacitus

Five Earths, All in a Row. Updated 12/17/2022: Apocrypha: Bridges out of Time, Part I has been posted.
Prince Charon is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-02-2017, 08:07 PM   #559
Apollonian
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Shoreline, WA (north of Seattle)
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

Quote:
Originally Posted by Prince Charon View Post
I normally don't do this here, but does anyone have suggestions for additions to this bit?:

June 13: Full Moon on Friday the 13th, on Earth-1. A group of Dresden Files necromancers perform the first of a sequence of rituals intended to eventually manifest the spirit of Heinrich Kemmler in the body of their leader. This goes unnoticed due to other incidents on this date, including 342 reported attacks by various types of werecreature, 47 by people or spirits dressed as Jason Vorhees, and PLACEHOLDER (suggestions?).
Several incidents of body-swapping, which are mostly resolved without lasting harm.
Apollonian is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-02-2017, 10:07 PM   #560
tshiggins
 
tshiggins's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Denver, Colorado
Default Re: Five Earths, All in a Row

Quote:
Originally Posted by Apollonian View Post
Several incidents of body-swapping, which are mostly resolved without lasting harm.
I like this, and it makes for an amusing and effective contrast with the other, more horrible, events.
__________________
--
MXLP:9 [JD=1, DK=1, DM-M=1, M(FAW)=1, SS=2, Nym=1 (nose coffee), sj=1 (nose cocoa), Maz=1]
"Some days, I just don't know what to think." -Daryl Dixon.
tshiggins is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
5 earths in a row, alternative earths, infinite worlds

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Fnords are Off
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 07:26 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.9
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.